Another Day In Trumplandia

Well, it’s Monday and we still live here, in Trumplandia. It is still a mind-boggling existence that makes no sense. There are still the daily violations of the basic norms of democracy, alongside the fundamental violations of human rights – women and men of color beaten up (and killed) in the streets, white men killed for defending them.

After the Portland tragedy, I wondered about self-defense. What strategy to pursue – learn to shoot a gun? I know I can’t do that, and anyway it seems like it all happened so fast, before anyone would even be able to choose that defensive option. Martial arts? Maybe with a weapon? Would that be practical and effective against a knife-wielding mad man? Pepper spray?

I point out that I’m very concerned about having a self-defense strategy against a white supremacist, so-called Christian, attacking women of color. Yet I have never thought even once about having a self-defense strategy against a so-called Muslim extremist.

For now, I guess I’m just going to go with love and kindness and non-violence and accept whatever it brings. One of my favorite yoga sutras, loosely translated and recalling from memory, says: when the practitioner is firmly established in non-violence, other beings abandon hostility in her presence. I’m going to keep working on my own non-violence and hope it can neutralize hostility, not just for me but also for those around me. Like a special super-hero shield.

I wanted to write something about the cooptation of resistance and then about 5 things happened that made it way more complicated. I wanted to write about why we need to hew to a very core definition of resistance and not get too excited about going to rallies and protests and not pretend that engaging in the normal democratic process is resistance. But it turns out, when democracy is being eroded as quickly as here, right now, even participating in the normal democratic process may be a powerful step.

Aside from the various kinds of real resistance on the streets of Portland this weekend, I’ve been inspired by the 211 Mayors and handful of governors (and counting) who committed to abide by the Paris Accords immediately after DJT decided to pull out. That’s real resistance. And right as the GOP is trying to take away Obamacare, the California State Senate passed a single-payer health care bill. Talk about pratipaksha bhavanam - bringing to bear the opposite. You want to take away the huge gift, but ultimately insufficient program, that is Obamacare? Okay, we'll go for something bigger and more comprehensive.

The only thing that can meet this moment is a sweeping, giant, universal vision that honors all of humanity. It is the only legitimate response. We are not going to get through it by trying to protect access to the crumbs, or build the smallest winning coalition.

It's making me wonder if DJT is actually going to galvanize and strengthen the foundation of support for a very different kind of world. If we can survive this time, we may be a more beautiful and more fully realized society on the other side.

The resistance didn’t start with those Mayors or California's Senators. It started with us, the people. It started with writing letters and making calls and organizing and attending rallies. It started with envisioning a reality where our voices matter, and making that reality real even without knowing how we would be heard. Those Mayors and Governors and Senators aren’t acting out of the goodness of their hearts or their unique understanding of the issues; they are acting because we helped create a reality they are accountable to.

A key element of being able to create the possibility of future resistance - deep, stubborn, obstinate, immovable resistance - is to start with the normal functioning of democracy. We have to do all the ordinary things to create space for the extraordinary to be in place when it is needed.

And that is also why I am so concerned about the major threats to free speech we are witnessing. Part of what is at stake here is our ability to assert an alternative vision for our country, and to take concrete action to realize it.

There is a rising tide of bullying that is stifling free speech. Linda Sarsour – one of the organizers of the women’s march and a fierce Palestinian-American activist – required additional security to make good on her invitation to speak at the CUNY graduation last weekend. Kenyatta Yamahtta Taylor didn’t even get that far. A Princeton professor who articulated what many of us think about DJT – that he is a misogynist white supremacist –  was the target of such intense death threats that she cancelled two major public speaking appearances. Kim Weaver, the Iowa woman who was running against Congressman Steve King, ended her candidacy for similar reasons. Death threats. Terrifying, overwhelming numbers of death threats.

We have to stand strong against this. In a white supremacist misogynistic autocracy that thrives on disinformation and propaganda, the voices of women of color are going to be one of the touchstones that anchors our understanding of reality. If these voices are silenced, who will be able to tell the truth? Who will be able to articulate the alternative vision that can represent all of us? How can I find my courage to act if others – who are much more courageous than I - are terrorized into silence?

I hope you’re all paying attention. The path of yoga is so emphatic on pratipaksha bhavanam – the path to transformation requires meeting ideas that arise out of anger, violence and misunderstanding with the opposite. Linda Sarsour, Kenyatta Yamahtta-Taylor – their vision, their stories present the alternative, the opposite of what surrounds us. We need their voices. We need them to be safe enough to help light the path forward. Freedom of speech is one of the anchor points of democracy, and one of the values that will help us see our way through this darkness.

Read what they have said. Email them, find them on facebook, tell them you appreciate their work. Give to their organizations and their security fund(s). Insist that freedom of speech be honored in the spaces you occupy. And don’t be afraid to speak out yourself. It is a weird time. We don’t know what the consequences are. But there is no other option. 

With love, gratitude and solidarity.